Mealworm farming

[WestVermont]

Meal worms is teaching my 3 yr old how to count.....lol. he always want to hold them and he is only allowed to hold what we count. I stared raising them a few months ago myself. I found a few websites for some reading and youtube videos (a great resource). I have had all four stages and advise newbies to avoid local feed and pet stores when starting as you will go broke starting up but buy in bulk and even with shipping you will be pleased... and so will your chickens.


I would not do cockroach. if you decide not to breed them you cant get rid of roaches so easy. If I was to chose a second bug I would do flies and feed of maggots.

 

[hemet dennis]

Meal worms is teaching my 3 yr old how to count.....lol. he always want to hold them and he is only allowed to hold what we count. I stared raising them a few months ago myself. I found a few websites for some reading and youtube videos (a great resource). I have had all four stages and advise newbies to avoid local feed and pet stores when starting as you will go broke starting up but buy in bulk and even with shipping you will be pleased... and so will your chickens.


I would not do cockroach. if you decide not to breed them you cant get rid of roaches so easy. If I was to chose a second bug I would do flies and feed of maggots.

Second would be earthworms.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Meal worms is teaching my 3 yr old how to count.....lol. he always want to hold them and he is only allowed to hold what we count. I stared raising them a few months ago myself. I found a few websites for some reading and youtube videos (a great resource). I have had all four stages and advise newbies to avoid local feed and pet stores when starting as you will go broke starting up but buy in bulk and even with shipping you will be pleased... and so will your chickens.


I would not do cockroach. if you decide not to breed them you cant get rid of roaches so easy. If I was to chose a second bug I would do flies and feed of maggots.

Roaches flat creep me out.. they are a good protein source, but my grandparents lived in Florida.. UGH omg they are so creepy. I was visiting for a week, the things came in at night. One fell on my forehead and woke me up

EEEEEK!

Roaches bees spiders.. forget it. I can deal with anything else.

 

[cluck-cluck]

LOL, I think darkling beetles look a lot like roaches, but knowing they're beetles makes me less grossed out

Actually, I've become so intrigued with them, and because they can be so easily contained, and they can't live outside the nice environment we provide really, they're not nearly as creepy!

When you ditch the cornmeal, it won't be wasted. Just soak it in water overnight, then feed it to the chickens! (If you have redworms, they'll LOVE it, too!)

If you decide to blenderize your bran, please remember to wear a mask. The respiratory issues that can result from breathing the fine dust (with or without mealworm allergens in there) are miserable! The mask is TOTALLY worth wearing.

I'm probably going to have to restock come spring--I think the recent freezing nights have largely eliminated most of my worms. I'll find out over the next few days as I go through and sort 'em out for intentional freezing. *sigh* Have to find a better way!

Yes, I wear them all the time when using chemicals and doing anything that's dusty, you are so right, prevention prevention prevention! Man, the stuff I've seen men do out on construction sites! Painters washing their hands with gasoline or acetone etc... not to mention the dust with no mask! They're going to have messed up lungs and nervous systems when they're in their 40's, I used to lecture 'em but they never listen

(hell, they gotta be in their 50's now! LOL)

I too had a problem with grain mites and I bake my substrate before using it, where did I go wrong? Well I was keeping the mealworms in the garage due to their smell, but I was also keeping the chicken scratch, chicken feed, and meal worm substrate in the garage as well. I thought I had everything far enough away from my mealworms but I guess not. It can't be a high humidity issue because we have below 20% humidity year round, I found that once the garage heated up during the summer ( around 90 degrees) the grain mites died off and I thought I was in the clear, but then when temps started cooling back down they returned and at that time I had moved them indoors to keep them active. The grain mites got so bad I just decided to feed everything out to my girls and I'll start over again in the spring!

Good luck, I hope I saved mine. The ones I put through the ringer seem to be active so I'm hoping I can rebuild!

Does anyone know of a way to raise worms (meal or others that chickens like) without using bran, but using something that is easier to grow or scavenge for free, like leaf litter or wood chips or potatoes, cabbages, and carrots? Or how about even crumbled up bread (I have access to free stale bread!) Has anyone tried this, I am trying to find the cheapest and most nutritional way to feed the chickens....

With bread, they love it (eat holes all over it) but you MUST be on top of it and remove it before it gets moldy, or you'll kill more than you feed!

What kind of bran? I feed my horse rice bran, but it's like $40 for 25lb bag lol. What type and where is it bought at?

Wheat bran, and since we live in the city, we get it at Sprouts, or Whole paycheck, but you don't need much...? It takes a long time for them to go through the stuff.

Also, you can do a compost pile and raise earth worms, they're great
LOL, I think darkling beetles look a lot like roaches, but knowing they're beetles makes me less grossed out

 

[Chicks Galore3]

I've never ever ever seen a cockroach, and from the sounds of them, NEVER plan too!!!! I Want to do earthworms, I gotta do some research and bat my eyelashes at my daddy! LOL No, when he sees that I've done the research, am willing to take responsibilty for it and are using my money, he usually says yes.

 

[Kassaundra]

Meal worms is teaching my 3 yr old how to count.....lol. he always want to hold them and he is only allowed to hold what we count. I stared raising them a few months ago myself. I found a few websites for some reading and youtube videos (a great resource). I have had all four stages and advise newbies to avoid local feed and pet stores when starting as you will go broke starting up but buy in bulk and even with shipping you will be pleased... and so will your chickens.


I would not do cockroach. if you decide not to breed them you cant get rid of roaches so easy. If I was to chose a second bug I would do flies and feed of maggots.

Feeder roaches are very easy to raise, much easier then even meal worms, and much quicker results, the chickens LOVE them. There are alot of people who buy roaches. The roaches you raise are not like the common house roach at all.

 

[Mavrk]

I've never ever ever seen a cockroach, and from the sounds of them, NEVER plan too!!!! I Want to do earthworms, I gotta do some research and bat my eyelashes at my daddy! LOL No, when he sees that I've done the research, am willing to take responsibilty for it and are using my money, he usually says yes.

Try red wigglers (Eisenia fetida). They are composting worms and not true earthworms. You can combine composting and feeding the chickens. The worm castings (poop) make amazing fertilizer. Just shred up some cardboard and add some decaying fruits and vegetables (avoid meat and dairy) then put in the worms. Feed every few days or every week or so with your fruit/veggie scraps (that you don't give to your chickens). You end up with less waste, good fertilizer, and extra worms to feed the chickens. It shouldn't be too hard to convince your father to allow you to try.

Here is a great site to get you started:
http://www.redwormcomposting.com/

I started with the inexpensive do-it-yourself worm bin, but eventually moved to the "Worm Inn". I have to say that I have had an easier time with the Worm Inn, but you can definitely have success without spending the extra cash. Some people use shredded newspaper in their bins, but I find those clump a lot more than cardboard. Plus I have a lot of cardboard around and it is easy to get old boxes (remove any tape or labels).

 

[Mavrk]

I bought 1000 mealworms from Amy about 2 months ago (highly recommend her by the way). They have all turned to beetles by now and I am eagerly awaiting the first baby mealworm sighting. I know it will probably be at least a couple more weeks before I see them. My chickens should start laying eggs around the same time, so the next month should prove to be very exciting all around.

I am using the single container/aquarium method ala Gallo Del Cielo. I have another 10 gallon aquarium sitting around, so I am already thinking of starting a 2nd mealworm bin once I start seeing babies by adding the remaining beetles to the new aquarium with some new bran.

 

[Chicks Galore3]

Quote: Thank you! I'll have to check that out!

 

[hemet dennis]

Quote:
It's much easier to raise earthworms if you have a spot outside and make a box with no bottom. 2' x 4' with 12 to 18" sides is a good size. Now just find some one with a horse or even better is rabbits. Fill the box 3/4 of they way up with the horse or rabbit or even both waste. Now all you need to do is add worms and spray water over them every few days This method will work anywhere. If you do something wrong like to dry or to wet or to hot or to cold the worms just go down in the dirt for awhile but they will always come back. You will need a piece of wood for the top to keep any chickens and rain out. if you get snow you can use a piece of Styrofoam for a lid and you don't have chickens free ranging.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Good luck